Photo: Green heron by Lindsay Vacek
Hello everyone,
It was a mild November day with temperatures in the 60s, but it was very, very windy! Most of the birds had enough sense to stay tucked away and ride out the weather, but those who were out and about were constantly being buffeted by the wind when they tried to fly. Even a Great Blue Heron had a hard time getting around. The gulls rode the winds and were flying as fast as Peregrine Falcons when they zipped by. We spotted two Flickers perched in a tree in the meadow, holding on tight to the branch. The only bird that didn’t seem too bothered by the wind was a Belted Kingfisher who was flying about in its usual manner. A highlight of the day for many of us was that we had a raccoon in each of the two raccoon holes on the island. We even saw one adorable raccoon face, looking very cozy in its slumber.
BIRDERS: Rob, Kristin, Gary, Mark, Cheryl, Mike, Jennie, Leslie, Chris, Joy, Megan, Trevor, Madeline, Jane, Roselle, Letty.
TIME: 8:00am to 10:00am
WEATHER: 61 degrees, cloudy and very windy
Compiler: Cheryl
Photographers: none – it was way too windy to hold a camera still!
Canada Goose Number observed: 67
Wood Duck Number observed: 14
Mallard Number observed: 4
Ring-billed Gull Number observed: 29
Great Blue Heron Number observed: 2
Black-crowned Night-Heron Number observed: 2
Belted Kingfisher Number observed: 1
Downy Woodpecker Number observed: 2
Northern Flicker Number observed: 2
American Crow Number observed: 3
Black-capped Chickadee Number observed: 3
Golden-crowned Kinglet Number observed: 5
European Starling Number observed: 10
American Robin Number observed: 7
House Sparrow Number observed: 13
American Goldfinch Number observed: 3
White-throated Sparrow Number observed: 5
Northern Cardinal Number observed: 3
If you’d like more information about a bird, check out the All About Birds ID guide:
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/
Corrections, additions and comments are welcome.
Recordings are not used to attract birds.
The Walks are free and open to one and all. They are held year-round. Newcomers are warmly welcomed.
Saturday morning walks: Start at 8:00 a.m. and cover a distance of two miles. Birders walk from the meeting spot counterclockwise onto Wooded Island. Exiting Wooded Island at the south end, the birders walk along the soccer field and enter the south end of Bobolink Meadow. The Meadow’s path leads to the Music Bridge. After crossing the Music Bridge birders walk through the parking lot and around the Columbia Basin (North Lagoon) and return to our meeting spot. In late fall, winter and early spring, the birders check for birds on the lakefront at the Outer Harbor near LaRabida Hospital and the Inner Harbor after the Wooded Island walk.
Meeting Spot: Birders meet on the west shore of the Columbia Basin (North Lagoon). Park on Stony Island Avenue near 59th Street, walk east across the parkland area, then cross Cornell Drive to reach the spot.
Good birding everyone,
Jennie